Flying Saucer Sugar Land Announces Beer Feast Event

I will be the first to admit, I never expected to like much Sugar Land's Town Square had to offer, much less the package as a whole. Between the distance, the generally unappealing Town Center shopping format or the fact most other concepts of this nature dotting Houston's landscape tend to be a teaming traffic and milling shoppers, the pretty wrapping never really distracted me from the fact most of these are just plain old shopping malls.

To get me to brave the madness, you had better bring your A game in the form of great destination tenants and make it easy to get in and out. Thanks to places like Guru Burgers, Japaneiro's and the newest Flying Saucer location (not to mention an easily accessed free parking garage), you can consider me an unlikely convert to Town Square.

If my next trip isn't sooner -- I think I may have a Guru Burgers addiction -- I will definitely be hitting Flying Saucer's inaugural outdoor Beer Feast, which hits Town Square Saturday, October 27, from 1 to 7 p.m.

This is the first major event in an absolutely jam-packed holiday calendar for Houston food and drink, and general manager Jake Rainey says that Flying Saucer is hoping the event will warm area residents up for the upcoming Houston Beer Week events, which follows just two weeks later. Boasting one of the largest selections of craft beer to hit Houston -- not to mention Sugar Land -- the event looks to be a no-brainer for craft beer fans.

While the final lineup of beers hasn't been set in stone, Jake promises a lengthy hand-picked list curated by the Sugar Land staff as well as Flying Saucer beer guru "Captain" Keith Schlabs. They plan to feature 40 breweries and more than 60 beers. Rainey and company are hoping to focus on local breweries while highlighting special releases from around the globe, with a special emphasis on pumpkin ales. The full tap list is still in the works, but highlights from the planned list include:

Ommegang Goudenhop

New Belgium Cocoa Mole

Stone Saison du Buff

Karbach Krunkin Punkin

Dogfish Head Punkin

Saint Arnold Pumpkinator

South Austin Saison

Schneider Hopfen Weiss

Unibroue 17

Real Ale Four Squared

(512) Four

Victory V12

In addition, even more limited-release beers are set to be tapped every hour on the hour at the fest. On the agenda are one-off local beers, so be on the look-out for special brews from the likes of Karbach and Buffalo Bayou, both known to create them for events like this one. As with most Houston beer festivals, you can also expect at least one iteration of Saint Arnold Divine Reserve to make an appearance.

"In addition to the local stuff, you'll see super-limited items from Stone, Dogfish Head, Breckenridge, Avery, Ommegang, Ska and lots of others, including some great Belgian beers," Rainey said. He mentioned that a special cask-conditioned beer area featuring Saint Arnold, 512 and Jester King among others is also planned.

There is no shortage of great food in Town Square, so you will have options to fill your sloshing beer belly, but the event will also have food booths set up on site from Turquoise Grill and Just Tamales.

General admission tickets to Beer Feast are available at www.beerfeast2012.com, and they are limited. The Flying Saucer will sell tickets at the door the day of the event if it's not sold out. I would recommend not taking any chances waiting.